Choosing Your Kitchen Appliances

When planning a the kitchen it is a good idea to choose your kitchen appliances first. Otherwise it's like getting house insurance before you get a house! So why exactly do I advise choosing your kitchen appliances first?

1. Because it is the appliances such as cooker, hob, oven, refrigerator, microwave and dishwasher that make your kitchen work. Only you know how you like to cook and the type of cooker you need, what sort of refrigerator you need, how much frozen food you need to keep handy in the kitchen, what sort of dishwasher you prefer, the microwave you need etc. It is your choice of appliances that helps to shape the design of the kitchen.

2. It actually helps the kitchen designer to know what spaces to allow for your kitchen appliances as early in the process as possible. Knowing what has to go in and the sizes of the spaces required right at the beginning, reduces the likelihood of unwelcome compromises later on.

3. It helps both you and the kitchen maker with budgeting. Once your priorities are sorted out, and appliances are priorities, you have a better idea of what is left over for the cabinets and benchtops and of course, the kitchen sink.

Gather all the brochures together and give them (or copies of them) to your designer when you discuss his/her brief.

What Kitchen Appliances Should You Choose?

These are decisions only you can make. There are essentials of course such as cookers, sinks and fridges but you’ll have to work out what you want and balance it against what your budget will stretch to. As a general rule choose the best quality you can afford, take advice from friends and perhaps a consumer organisation and check the guarantee. Consider an induction cooktop. The price for these has dropped dramatically in recent times and many people are replacing gas hobs with induction ones to enjoy the same instant control but without the high cost of gas installation. Check also the cost of an extended guarantee. It is said that some suppliers make more profit from selling extended guarantees than they do by selling the appliances themselves.

The best standard guarantee known to the author for kitchen appliances is by Parmco, a whopping 7 years. Now that shows confidence in the product!

Replacing Kitchen Appliances

Apart from when buying a new kitchen, updating or renovating, appliances are also replaced when they’ve reached the end of their service life and are not worth the cost of repairing.

These days the choice is bewildering and you might prefer just to replace an appliance with the updated model of the brand you had. On the other hand, if you’re not bothered about the brand or just wish to save money you can shop around. Even then it can be a mission to find what you want at the right place. Kitchen appliances are relatively cheaper than they were years ago because of the inflated value of the NZ dollar (or they should be). Also there are many more brands to choose from.

Remember that the world has changed and most branded products are not actually made in factories bearing the brand name. The rise in OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturing) means that many familiar brands are actually made in the same factories as their competitors. All that differentiates the different offerings is design and (of course) price. The bigger the brand, the bigger the price tag although the products are essentially the same.

So shop around carefully and do your research on the internet. Some of the newer or more obscure brands have great quality products that will save you a lot of money.